Mail-bag



(No Model.)

W- F. BEASLEY. MAILBAG.

Patented Nov. 17, 1891.

wi tmaoo co WW/QWM W UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

VILLIAM F. BEASLEY, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

MAIL-BAG.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 463,349, dated N ovember17, 1891.

Application filed September 22, 1890. Serial No. 365,803. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM F. BEASLEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail- Bags; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in mail-bags, although, as will be obvious from the following specification, it may be applied to bags used for other purposes; and it consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of the parts thereof, as will be hereinaftermore fully described and claimed.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which corresponding parts are designated by corespondingletters, Figure 1 is a top view of my invention. Fig. 2 is a top View thereof, it being closed, but the cover being removed. Fig. 3 is a detached view of four of the hinged straps. Fig. 4 is an inverted plan view of the cover to be used with my invention. Fig. 5 is a sectional detail view showing the method of attaching the top pieces to the bag and the construction of the bag proper. Fig. 6 is an elevation of a bag having a cover applied thereto after this invention, the'flanges of the cover being partly broken away.

The 'bag proper 1 is formed in three layers, the outer layer 2 being of canvas or duck which is woven in such a manner as to be .seamless, the second layer 3 being of woven tected and which would be difficult on account of the wire netting contained within the canvas, the india-rubber rendering the bag water-proof, and affording an additional means of detecting whether the bag has been cut, as it will be impossible to join the edges of the slit in such a manner as, to avoid detection.

The upper edge of the canvas of the bag is brought around pieces or straps of metal 5 and are riveted thereto, the edges of the cancated in the hem of the edges of the bag,

forming the stiffening for the sides 6 7 and I 6 7 thereof. The strap 5 within each of the sides 7 is hinged at its free endto one end of one of the shorter straps which forms the stiffening for the sides 8 8 of the top of the bag, each of the last-named straps being hinged atits opposite end to one end of another of the short straps, which strap is also hinged to one of the straps within the sides 6 6, and forms the stiffening for the sides 9 9 of the bag, thus permitting the top of the bag (which, when opened, is an irregular octagon) to be folded into the form of a square, the sides 8 and 9 folding against the inner surface of the sides 7, which are at-right angles to the sides 6, as seen in Fig. 2. In order to retain the sides 7, 8, and 9 together, and to prevent any one or more of them from being drawn downward without the others a stud 10 projects inwardfrom a portion of the side 7, and is adapted to pass through corresponding holesv 11 in the proper portion of the sides 8 and 9, thus holding the latter up.

The hinges between the several straps are formed by projections 12 upon the ends which are bent around hinge-pins, as is well known, and needs no further description here, the said hinges being entirely concealed and protected from injury by the edge of the bag which, as before described, is wrappedaround the straps. I11 some cases, indeed, the form of hinge before mentioned may be done away with, the hem ,of the bag re-enforced with leather being used for hinging the straps within the several sides thereof, such canvas and leather hinges being well known, and this, therefore, involves no departure from the principle of this invention, and in the following claims I do not desire to have the word hinged limited to any particular form of binge, but desire that word toeover eitherof the above forms and their equivalents.

In case a canvas hinge is used I place upon the ends of the sides 6, on the inner surface below their lower edges, shelves or noses 13, the upwardly-projecting flanges of which are riveted to the strap within the sides (5 of the bag, the said shelves being adapted to slide under the stiffening of the sides 9 9 when the bag is closed, and thus hold them up, and by means of the studs 10 to also hold up the sides 8 and 7 These shelves are also of value and are adapted to be used with metallic hinges, and I have therefore shown them in the drawings.

Each of the sides 7, 8, and 9 has a perforation 27 therein, which extends therethrongh, the said perforations registering with each other when the top of the bag is closed, being thus adapted to receive the opposite ends of a transverse bar or bolt 28, which is slid therein from one side of the bag, it being of of the same or slightly less length than the distance from the interior surface of one flange 16 to the corresponding surface of the other, and is thus prevented from being withdrawn when the cover is in place, preventing any one of the sides 7, 8, and 9 from being drawn down without the others, which is prevented by the barrel 17, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

Each of the sides 6 6 has an inwardly-extended rounded projection or lug 25 in the center thereof, and has on each side of the luginwardly-projeeting flanges 14-, which have perforations 35 therein, the use of which will be hereinafter described, the said lugs and flanges being riveted in place by rivets passing through the straps 5 contained within the said sides, one of the said lugs and sides 6 being apertured in order to admit the passage of a key to actuate the barrel secured tothe cover of the bag, which looks the latter in place. The said cover 15 is square and is of such a size as to fit snugly over the sides 6 and 7 of the top of the bag when the latter is closed, as in Fig. 2, the flanges 16 on the said cover inclosing the said sides, that flange of the cover corresponding to the apertured side 6 of the bag being also apertured, the said aperture being in alignment with the end of the revolving barrel 17, which is carried on the under surface of the cover 15 by means of standards 18, the opposite ends of the said barrel having arc-shaped flanges 19 thereon, which are adapted, when the cover is placed upon the top of the closed bag and the barrel rotated, to revolve upon the lugs and to catch below the lower surface thereof, thereby locking the cover against removal. 'The barrel 17 is revolved by means of a key inserted in the apertures in the side 6 and in the side of the flange 16, corresponding therewith, the end of the key being received by a slot in the corresponding end of the barrel 17, whereby it may regulate the position of dogs or pins, as is well known in the so-ealled Yale lock, thus locking or unlocking the barrel against or for rotation, in the latter of which cases the barrel may be turned by means of the key, looking or unlocking the cover, as may be desired. 1 may also, if desired,place a registering mechanism upon the said bar rel, the said mechanism being of the character granted to Henry Clarke by Letters Patent of the United States No. 220,124, dated September 30, 1879; but asI have described such a lock-lid in an application for Letters Patent filed by me 011 the 22d day of September, 1890, and serially numbered 365,802, I do not desire to claim such a lock herein.

A series of teeth 20 project downward from the lower surface of the cover at the sides thereof corresponding to the sides 6 6 of the bag, the teeth being in such aposit-ion that they are adapted to enter the perforations in the flanges 14: on the sides 6 6, thereby holding the said sides 6 6 more securely and preventing a sideward movement of the top of the bag within the cover. It will be noticed that the top of the bag is entirely contained within the flanges 16 of the cover, and that as long as the cover is in place it will be impossible to force the sides of the top of the bag in such a manner as to permit the abstraction of its contents.

It will be obvious that any of the layers of the bag may be done away with, or that any suitable number of straps permitting sides for the bags may be used without departing from the nature of my invention. It is also obvious that the edge of the bag may be secured to the straps in any desired manner without changing the character thereof.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. A bag having a series of hinged stiffening-straps secured to the top thereof, two of the opposite straps having inwardly-projecting shelves at their opposite ends and at their lower edges, the said shelves being adapted to slide under the stiffening-straps of the contiguous sides, as described.

2. The combination, with a bag having a series of hinged straps secured to the top thereof and two opposite straps having inwardlyprojecting perforated flanges, of a cover having a series of teeth adaped to enter the perforations in said flanges, as described.

3. The combination, with a bag having a series of hinged straps secured to the top thereof, and two opposite straps having inwardly-projecting lugs thereon, of a cover having a rotating barrel on the under surface thereof, the said barrel having arc-shaped flanges upon its opposite ends adapted to engage the said lugs, as described.

4:. A bag having a series of eight stiffeningstraps secured to the top thereof, two of the said straps when closed being parallel and separated from each other and the remaining straps, in sets of three, folding upon each other, the opposite ends of the outer and inner straps of each of the said sets of three being hinged to the-said opposite ends of the said parallel straps, as described.

the said straps when folded and to be locked v thereon, as described.

6. The combination, With a bag having a series of hinged straps secured to the upper end thereof, the opposite straps having per forations therein, of a bolt crossing the mouth of the said bag and having its ends contained in the said perforations and a cover adapted to fit over the said bag and hold the bolt in place, as described.

In testimony whereof Ijaffix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM F. BEASLEY. Witnesses:

V. M. DORSEY, ZADIE GIBSON. 

